rite de passage
/ˌɹit də ˌpɑˈsɑʒ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.53 in modern English
17
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Example Sentences
- "it seems that the beginning of the decline of this traditional rite de passage should be traced back to the break effected by the Reformation, though the change also had sociological causes, notably the decline of the tightly knit community in which an individual death created an immediate void."
- "Stravinsky's wistful and brutal “Rite of Spring” has become a rite de passage for choreographers attracted to its rhythmic intricacies."
- "Males hoping for acceptance must undergo a perilous rite de passage."
- "Our Fifth Congress, “A Time for Action” was indeed a rite de passage, a coming of age, for adolescent health, acknowledging that this is an important international issue, a universal and long-neglected cause."
- "An ailment can be a rite de passage, a childhood illness an essential preliminary to entry into adulthood."
- "Parents operate in a culture where views on teenagers and substances are hopelessly polarised. On one side, excess is a rite de passage undergone by all "proper" teenagers."
Etymology
Borrowed from French rite de passage, and attested later than rite of passage. The French term was coined by French ethnographer and folklorist Arnold van Gennep (1873–1957) and popularized in his work Les rites de passage (1909).
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₂er-
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌɹit də ˌpɑˈsɑʒ/
- British English: /ˌɹiːt də paˈsɑːʒ/